Worms and Frames

Take a look at this photo of my bike;



See that long, stringy thing on the frame? Looks like a worm. Smells like a worm. Tastes like a worm. It is a worm! Maybe it's time to clean the bike. I know that spring riding is filled with sand, salt, road debris, etc., but sheesh! Worms? It also highlights the need, and I do mean need for a second frame. One for crappy weather riding and racing (dings, dents, scratches and so on) and another for sunny days. And it's always good to have a backup in the event of a mechanical failure or other problem. You may recall that NASA utilized the theory of triple redundancy for safety purposes during the moon landings. So I guess I should think about having three bikes. Or is that four? Single redundancy would be a main and a backup, double redundancy would be...

With that in mind, the UPS man showed up today. That's right folks, the new frame arrived! Everything appears to be in order and I'm excited to finally have it.



Now I need to get to work putting it together. I have quite a bit of the Shimano Dura-Ace stuff that I... What's that? You think it's akin to blasphemy that I'm putting Japanese components on an Italian frame? As much as it would be nice to slap some Campagnolo stuff on the new frame the fact is I find that the Shimano stuff works better. It's a personal thing but I'd rather use what I like and know rather than put other stuff on just to keep the thing all Italian. What do I care? I've got no affinity for Italy or Italians. I'm sure it's a lovely country and the people are probably nice but it's my bike, I'll do whatever I want with it. Unless of course you make me an offer I can't refuse. Capiche?

Anyway, where was I... Oh yea, I purchased most of the parts over last summer and fall as things went on sale. Then I gave it to my wife to distribute among family members to give to me as holiday gifts. Pretty neat plan isn't it? They didn't have to worry about what to get me, and I got what I wanted. And there's no need to tell anyone that a Dura Ace crank doesn't really cost $35.00 is there?

What I like about the clear coat of the frame (besides being a few grams lighter than paint), is that you can see the weave of the carbon fiber. Take a look;



I hope to start assembly sometime this week. On Wednesday I'm picking up a Specialized handlebar and stem that I ordered last week. With that I think that I've got all the bits that I need, with the exception of wheels and a computer. For wheels I'll probably go with Mavics as I really like the pair that I've got. Computer? I've never been happy with any that I've had. If you've got a recommendation I'd love to hear it.